Administration Moving Against Pork

Cross your fingers, but the Secretary of the Treasury is indciating that the administration may take on spending:

The Bush administration's highest economic priority for its remaining three years is to control the growth of federal spending and bring down the US budget deficit, John Snow, US Treasury secretary, said.

“The clear priority of the administration right now is the deficit, making sure that we achieve the president's objective of cutting the deficit in half by the time he leaves office,” he said in an interview with the Financial Times. This would put the deficit below 2 per cent of gross domestic product, low by historical standards.

“This administration knows that deficits matter,” he added. “We know they're unwelcome.”

Mr Snow also called on China to introduce greater currency flexibility by widening the trading band of the renminbi.

The declaration is the clearest signal yet as to which areas of domestic agenda the administration intends to pursue hardest as President George W. Bush tries to recast his presidency after a disastrous year.

Hopefully, the public sentiment to reduce pork is finally influencing the administration to cut back discretionary spending. Maybe not we can restore sound fiscal policy to our federal budgetary process.